I Hate the bus stop

I do. Hate is a strong word, I know, but I do. I hate the bus stop. Every morning bright and early at 7:30 AM there are bratty little mongrels running wild on the bus stop making me crazy! And poor First Son, he just wants to be part of the crowd, but he's not a bratty little mongrel.

We share the corner with two other families, the aforementioned smokin at the bus stop Gang-bangers (although no more smoke) and another family I will call the Wild Rovers. The WR are an Irish American family with two boys, one in 1st grade and one who is 4 and just takes the walk to the bus stop - both boys are nuts - especially the little one. The parents are out of their mind. These kids are always out in the middle of the street, riding their bikes without helmets, the 6yr old has a skateboard and a ramp thing - and again no helmet, in fact I wouldn't be surprised if these kids light firecrackers too! Little Jose Gang-banger is nutty too, in that he is just a wild "boy". First Son on the other hand is much more mild mannered, not to say that he can't stir up a ruckus with the best of them.

This morning, as we approached the bus stop, we could see these boys running WILD. Running all around the street, chasing each other with sticks, and screaming! I called First Son over before we even got to the bus stop to have a quick chat. I told him " Remember, you are responsible for you. It doesn't matter what anybody else is doing. If other kids are being wild, that doesn't mean that you have to be wild too." He said "I know" So, we get to the corner and I say my good mornings to the oblivious parents, then set to watching the chaos unfold. These boys are body slamming one another, jumping on top of the tree stumps on the corner, then in order to keep their sticks safe from the other, throwing their bellies down on top of the stump and then piling on top of each other. They are laughing, and screaming as their parents stare off into space. My hair is standing on end. First Son is smirking to himself, to him, this looks like fun. Someone is about to get hurt, I am sure.

Just like the maniac motorcyclists who come up behind you on the parkway at 100mph, who cause the accident, but are never the ones in the accident, who is it that gets hurt this morning? That's right. First Son. Argh. He decides he can't take it anymore, he must be a part of this brouhaha that is unfolding before him. He starts to take off running behind the other boys, but he gets no farther that three steps before he falls, flat on his face. Then of course, there are tears. Seriously? Why can't people be more civilized at 7:30 in the morning?

I calm First Son down, wipe away his tears, tell him that he's okay. He says, can I try again? What!? No. I tell him, loud enough for the other parents and kids to hear, "I don't like running wild at the bus stop, it's not a good way to start the day. When you go to recess, or when you go to gym you get to run. Not now when you have a heavy back pack on your back, and there are cars driving nearby."

The poor kid wasn't even hurt that bad, I think he was just so embarrassed. He was embarrassed because he fell down in front of his friends, and I think he was embarrassed because he knew that he didn't make a good decision.

I love kids, I do. I just hate parents. Seriously, our corner is a pretty busy street traffic wise. What is wrong with these people? Tell your children to "stop it". If you don't I will. Actually, I think I may just start driving to school. That way we can all sleep a little later, and no one gets hurt. Keep looking for that For Sale sign, I really think it's gonna show up soon!